


Two Hearts Made For One

by MalScrive



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrien loves Marinette, F/M, Fluff, Friendship/Love, Gabriel Internship, LadyNoir - Freeform, Ladybug loves Chat Noir, Love Confessions, Marichat, Miraculous Ladybug Love Square, Mysterious Crush, Reverse Crush (Miraculous Ladybug), Reversed love-square AU, Smut, The Ladyblog, They're both Blind, adrienette - Freeform, ladrien
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-02
Updated: 2020-05-06
Packaged: 2020-06-02 04:34:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,465
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19434034
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MalScrive/pseuds/MalScrive
Summary: Since the first day Adrien Agreste started attending public school and laid eyes upon the beautiful French-Chinese girl with the dark indigo hair in adorable pigtails, he knew that he was hopelessly and utterly smitten.But it’s hard for Adrien to confess his feelings to Marinette Dupain-Cheng when he can barely speak a single coherent sentence to her; her busy schedule of school and working an internship at Gabriel; his own busy schedule of modelling for his father, the renowned fashion designer Gabriel Agreste, as well as leading his secret crime fighting life as Chat Noir, one of Paris’ heroic superheroes.And of course, the crush that Marinette apparently has on some mysterious guy that she claims to work with!





	1. First Meetings

**Author's Note:**

> *Disclaimer: I own nothing, Miraculous Ladybug is the work of Thomas Astruc.*
> 
> Hi!
> 
> I've been playing around with this idea for a while now. What would the Miraculous story look like through Adrien's eyes if he was the one who had a crush on Marinette?  
> Hope you like it and Happy Reading!
> 
> Ps. This is my first FanFic that I've ever written, so I'd greatly appreciate feedback and support in the comments below. Thanks Guys! x

From the very first moment Adrien walked into his class at Collège Françoise Dupont, he had fallen head over heels for the beautiful girl with the dark indigo pigtails who sat directly behind him, Marinette Dupain-Cheng. God even her name alone sounded so beautiful. Although despite his wishes, their first initial meeting wasn’t something that he imagined it to be. She had caught him in the act of trying to remedy a cruel joke that his childhood best friend, Chloé Bourgeois, had played. Of course, that’s not how Marinette saw it. She walked into the classroom at the exact moment Adrien was trying to remove the disgusting piece of chewing gum that Chloé had placed on her seat, and to her, it seemed as though he was deliberately putting the piece of gum on her seat himself. Talk about making a great first impression. But slowly over time, Adrien did what he could to try and show Marinette that he wasn’t such a bad guy as she first thought he was. 

At the end of their first day of school, when it was time to leave, Adrien was about to walk down the front steps to meet his driver who was waiting for him at the front of the school when he noticed Marinette standing in the entrance way. It was pouring down with rain and she had clearly forgotten to bring an umbrella. Adrien saw this as an opportunity to try and make peace with the spit-fiery girl before him. 

“Um… hey,” he said, turning to her with a shy smile.

Frowning at him, Marinette simply turned her head in the opposite direction and said nothing,

Letting out a small sigh of defeat Adrien opening up his umbrella, and stepped out into the rain. But instead of walking down to his waiting driver he turned back to face Marinette I attempted one more time. “I just wanted you to know that I was only trying to take the chewing gum off your seat, I swear.”

Marinette slowly turned back to face him and seemed genuinely surprised by Adrien’s confession.

“I’ve never been to school before. I never had friends. It’s all, sort of, new to me,” Adrien continued saying. 

Looking down at her feet Marinette finally responded shyly, “when I saw you with the chewing gum earlier, and Chloé laughing behind you, I instantly thought you were just as horrible as her. I’m sorry for misjudging you Adrien.”

As she slowly looked up at him through her dark eyelashes, Adrien felt his heartbeat begin to intensify. What was this strange new feeling? Was he coming down with a cold? Maybe he should ask Nathalie to call a doctor once he got home. 

A rumble of thunder from overhead reminded Adrien of the pouring rain coming down around them and Marinette’s lack of an umbrella. Adrien extended out his arm and offered Marinette his umbrella as a final offering of peace. Once again Marinette seemed surprised for a moment as she stared at him. But the surprised look upon her face was quickly replaced with a small smile of gratitude by the simple gesture. 

As Marinette reached out to take the umbrella from Adrien, their fingers brushed against each other for a brief moment. Even though the contact between them was only fleeting, Adrien felt a sharp tingling sensation within fingers as their hands meet. He continued smiling to her as she brought the umbrella closer to herself. At that same instance, Marinette must have accidentally pressed the button on the side of the umbrella handle because the black canopy snapped shut around her. 

Adrien couldn’t help but chuckle at the sight of her engulfed by the umbrella, but Marinette didn’t find it amusing at all. Instead, she let out an embarrassed grunt and mumbled, “typical me being the super klutz that I am.”

“Here let me help you,” Adrien focused himself to stop laughing and moved closer towards Marinette. 

_‘Great job Agreste. Just when you’re starting to make a good impression with her, you have to go and laugh at her. Now what’s she going to think of me?’_ Adrien thought sadly to himself. 

As he helped lift the umbrella canopy up from around Marinette, he noticed that she had started to laugh softly herself. Her small giggles were like soft bells ringing in his ears and the sound alone made his heart beat faster.

Once they managed to reopen the umbrella, Adrien exchanged one last friendly smile with her and began ascending down the school steps to where his driver was still waiting.

“Adrien.” The sound of her calling out his name made him stop dead in his tracks and sent a sweet shiver up his spine. Slowly he turned around to face her once more. “I just wanted to say thank you. Not just for the umbrella but also for your sincere apology. It’s not the first time that I’ve been on the receiving end of one of Chloé’s cruel jokes, and nor will it be the last. I’m just sorry that she dragged you into it. But anyways thanks again, it really means a lot to me. And I hope that we can put this behind us now and be friends?”

“Yeh… yes… I’d… um… love to… er… be frrri...ends,” Adrien calls back. _‘Woah why am I stammering?’_ he wondered.

“Well great, I guess I’ll see you tomorrow then!” Marinette replies as she walks down the steps.

“Uh-huh, see ya to...ma, tomor...row,” Adrien stammers as she heads in the direction of a corner bakery across the street.

A smug smile slowly rises upon Adrien’s face as he stares at Marinette’s disappearing figure.

“First day of school and we already have two lovebirds,” exclaims Plagg as he pops out from Adrien’s overshirt. It’s still a slightly unusual feeling to have this small black Kwami with him all the time now, but it’s definitely not unwanted. It actually feels nice not having to be constantly alone anymore.

Adrien looks down at the little Kwami and shakes his head, “whatever, she’s just a friend.” Realising his casual words Adrien whispers to himself, “oh, a friend!” He can already feel a bit of heat growing within his cheeks at the mere thought of having Marinette as his new friend.

Feeling ridiculous about still standing out in the rain alone, Adrien finally reaches his waiting car and climbs in. He can still feel the undeniable heat upon his cheeks and can’t seem to stop thinking about the sweet French-Chinese girl with the adorable pigtails for the entire trip back home. And what’s more, for some reason he can’t seem to shake the feeling of wanting to more than _just friends_ with Marinette Dupain-Cheng.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So at this point, I'm not sure if I'll be making regular updates to this story; as I am currently working on a few other projects at the same time. We'll just have to wait and see how things go. :)


	2. First Day on the Job

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrien thinks back to the battle against Stoneheart and meeting a certain spotted partner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Guys,  
> Hope you enjoy the second chapter to my story, Two Hearts Made For One!  
> Like usual, please share any thoughts and feelings in the comments below.  
> Thanks. x

As Adrien entered class the next day, he couldn’t help but feel excited about seeing Marinette. The idea of seeing her again had him feeling giddy all morning. But as he walked into class and looked over at her seat from the doorway, his cheerful mood was instantly killed because all he saw was just a vacant seat. 

_‘Where was she?’_ Adrien wondered, _‘I hope she didn’t end up catching a cold from being out in the rain yesterday’_. 

As he took his seat in the front row and fist bumped Nino in greeting, he tried to not appear too disappointed. Thankfully the joyfully greeting with Nino helped to turn his sad mood. Nino was the guy who always wore headphones around his neck and listened to some of the sickest beats that Adrien had ever heard; whether they were from some fresh new tracks or his own cool mixes. Nino just had an incredible vibe about him that Adrien instantly loved, and he was hoping that they would soon become really great best friends.

Looking around the room at the rest of the students that were currently in the room, he noticed that most of them were chatting lively together in a large group just behind his desk. And at the centre of it all was Alya, the girl with the wavy reddish-brown hair and glasses who sits next to Marinette behind him and Nino. 

“What’s going on?” Adrien asked as he leaned closer to Nino.

“Dude, haven’t you heard? Everyone's buzzing about the new superheroes of Paris, Ladybug and Chat Noir. Aren’t they awesome!” Nino exclaimed.

“You got that right!” Obviously, Alya’s ears pricked up at the mention of the superheroes’ names and leaned over her desk to the boys. “And yours truly is going to be keeping you all up to date with everything you need to know! Check it, The Ladyblog! I'm going to be there every minute to capture every bit of all the action” Alya thrust her phone towards Adrien and Nino as that they could see the blog that she was talking about. “How awesome is Ladybug? What she did yesterday was incredible!”

“And don't forget about Chat Noir, he was pretty amazing yesterday too.” Adrien head instantly snapped around in the direction of the voice that had added itself to their conversation. He watched on, with a growing smirk, as the beautiful owner of that sweet voice walked into the classroom and take her seat next to Alya.

“You got that right girl! Ladybug and Chat Noir, the amazing superhero duo of Paris! And the Ladyblog is going to be covering everything. I already have sights set on what my next target for the blog is going to be. Ladybug, an exclusive interview! Oh wait, or even better! Finding out who’s really behind that mask.” Alya was almost burst out of her seat in excitement.

“Uh-huh. Good luck with that one,” Marinette giggled at her friend's enthusiasm.

“Gooood morrow, err… morning Mar..in..ne..nette!” Adrien’s sudden outburst of a greeting turned Marinette’s attention away from her friend, and towards the two onlooking boys. It wasn't exactly how Adrien was hoping to capture her attention this morning, but it seemed to do the trick either way.

With a warm smile she pleasantly returned his greeting, “Good morning Adrien. Good morning Nino. So what do you guys think of the new protectors of Paris?” She leaned forward across her desk in attempts to move closer to the boys; and which unexpectedly caused Adrien’s heart to beat faster.

“Hey Dudette! Oh man they're so awesome, I can't believe that we have actual superheroes now! They’re so cool.” 

Still smiling, she then turned to Adrien in hope that he'd add his own opinion into their conversation.

“Errr… yeah… I think they're grape! I MEAN GREAT!” Adrien swiftly turned back around to face the front of the class, as he could already feel redness burning into his face at his embarrassing stammering.

Marinette poorly tried to conceal a soft giggle at Adrien’s overly loud comment, just as the teacher walked into the room to start the class. Despite his efforts to focus on what Miss Bustier was saying as she commenced today’s lesson, his mind couldn't help but wander back to the dramatic events of the day before and everything that had happened.

* * *

_As Adrien leapt across the rooftops of Paris in his new cat-like outfit, he still couldn't believe that this was all real. He couldn't believe that this was going to be his new life; A SUPERHERO OF PARIS! It honestly felt like a dream; a really good dream that he never wanted to wake up from._

_As he started experimenting between two buildings with what else he could do in this incredible new suit and the baton that came with it, he heard a loud cry like someone was falling from the sky. And it sounded like it was coming towards him, and fast. Suddenly he was hit with a forceful impact and fell off of his baton that he was balancing on just moments ago._

_He was now hanging from it upside down and tied up around a girl with dark indigo hair, tied in pigtails, and who was wearing a red and black spotted costume._

_“Well hey there. Nice of you to drop in.”_

_“Oh my gosh I'm so sorry”, the girl exclaimed, “I didn’t do it on purpose, it’s just that I have no idea how this thing works.”_

_“Don't worry, I'm still getting the hang of the ropes too.”_

_“Um… give me a second and I’ll try to see if I can get us out of this tangle.”_

_The girl reached up and tugged on the string that had them suspended in midair. As if on command, the string realised them and they finally landed onto the ground._

_“So I bet you’re the partner my Kwami told me about. I’m um…,” realising that he had not given any thought to what his superhero name would be, Adrien thought deeply about it for a moment. It obviously had to be something fitting to tie in with his costume, and his Kwami did look like a little black cat after all. ‘Wait that’s perfect,’ he thought to himself._

_“Chat Noir. Yeah! I’m Chat Noir. Happy to be of service. And what might your name be my lady?”_

_The mystery girl stood gawking at him for a moment; it was as if she didn’t understand nor hear his question._

_She soon realised that she still had not answered his question and her face began to turn a light shade of pink._

_“Err… I’m… ahh… er…” Clearly, she couldn’t think of anything on the spot._

_“Hey don’t sweat it little lady, we can always work out superhero names later.”_

_The sound of loud rumbling and stomping from a few streets down drew their attention away from their little moment together. Chat Noir turned back to the mystery girl and said, “but right now I think we have a supervillain to deal with. Come on!” Using his baton, he hoisted himself up in a single bound and landed up upon one of the nearby buildings. He then took off running off in the direction of the monstrous sound._

_“Hey wait where are you going?!” the girl cried out to him._

_“To save Paris right?” he called back down to her before taking off across the rooftops._

_Sure enough, Chat Noir soon heard another pair of feet running behind him. He smiled to himself as the girl in the spotty costume followed closely behind him._

_*****_

_Battling Stoneheart, TWICE, turned out to be more tiresome than Chat Noir had initially anticipated. They thought the first battle against him was tough, but when he reappeared the second time, and with stonemen by his side, things became even more challenging. There was even a time that Chat Noir had to take on the stonemen alone because his partner was nowhere to be found. Not one of his finest moments charging into battle alone, because it merely resulted in him becoming captured all too quickly. Thankfully the spotty girl jumped in just in time to rescue him. She even made a joke about how she seems to always turn his world upside down._

_Chat Noir didn’t mind the jokes she made, sometimes he would even play along. He liked how she was able to joke around and make a dull situation fun, but she also knew when to be serious. Like during a battle, her flirtatious comments and coy jokes would instantly change into strategic thinking and witty solutions. Chat had never met such a fun girl before, and honestly, it just made their time together even more enjoyable._

_After realising that fighting the stonemen was pointless, the spotty girl stated that if they wanted to stop Stoneheart once and for all then they had to go to the source. They took off in the direction of the Eiffel Tower, where sure enough they found Stoneheart waiting._

_Before they could finally face off with him, he doubled over and began violently coughing up thousands of black moths. As Stoneheart collapsed to the side, the moths drew themselves together to form the face of a man._

_“People of Paris listen carefully,” the face began speaking as they all watched on in shock and horror. “I am Hawkmoth. Ladybug and Chat Noir, give me the Ladybug earrings and the Cat ring now. You’ve done enough damage to these innocent people.”_

_Just like all the other people surrounding him, Chat Noir didn’t know what to make of this person called Hawkmoth, or what he was implying. He suddenly heard sarcastic clapping coming from his right and he turned to look at his partner in dismay._

_“Nice try Hawkmoth, but we know who the bad guy is; let’s not reverse the role here. Without you, none of these innocent victims would be transformed into villains. Hawkmoth, no matter how long it takes, we will find you and you will hand us your miraculous!” Swiftly, she leapt forward towards the Eiffel Tower and cried “Time to de-evilise!”. She began swinging her yo-yo around, capturing all the black moths within it and Hawkmoth disappeared in a roar of anguish._

_Landing where the face of Hawkmoth once stood, she made a declaration to all of Paris. “Let me make this promise to you! No matter who wants to harm you, Ladybug and Chat Noir will do everything in our power to keep you safe.” Opening her yo-yo, she then released all of the now purified moths._

_Looking on from the ground and surrounded by cheering people, Chat Noir quietly whispered to himself, “Whoever she is beneath that mask, that girl is amazing.”_

_The remaining battle against Stoneheart ended just a quickly as it had begun. Now having more confidence and faith in each, Ladybug and Chat Noir soon realised that they made an incredible team together._

_With a little wit and fast reflexes on saving both Ivan and Mylene from a horrible fall from the Eiffel Tower, the Akuma was finally captured and purified. With a final cry of “Miraculous Ladybug!", Ladybug then restored everything back to how it once was in a gleaming burst of a million little ladybugs that swarmed around the city, correcting any damage that was caused by the attack._

_The beeping noise from his ring alerted Chat Noir that his transformation would soon be wearing off; and which clearly meant it was time to go. “Well, it looks like it’s time to split. I hope to see you soon Ladybug.”_

_Just before Chat lept away, Ladybug replied with a smug smile, “I look forward to it Chaton.”_

* * *

Releasing that he had spent almost the entire time of the lesson thinking about the previous day, Adrien forced his mind back into reality and took whatever notes he could on the remainder of Miss Bustier’s class.

As the bell rang and Adrien slowly collected his belongings, he couldn’t help but overhear a bit of conversation between Marinette and Alya from behind him.

“Wow girl, that looks amazing. It’s so realistic.” Alya was leaning closer to Marinette and her open book to get a better look at whatever was in it.

“It’s only a rough sketch for now, but thanks Alya,” Marinette replied in a prideful tone.

_‘Marinette sketches?’_ Adrien thought to himself, _‘I wish I could see some of her work too.’_ He didn’t mean to, but Adrien couldn’t help but feel a little bit envious of Alya right now. As curiosity took over, he turned his head slightly and tried to discreetly glimpse over his shoulder to what the girls were looking at. 

Unfortunately, Adrien didn’t get to see very much of Marinette’s sketch, as she had begun to close her sketchbook at that very same moment and put it into her backpack. All he managed to see was something that partly looked like a cat, and it just made Adrien’s curiosity deepen even more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... I just wanted to apologise to anyone who felt like the actual battle against Stoneheart wasn't that exciting or detailed. I'm going to be completely honest with you, I'm still finding my feet when it comes to writing battle scenes, but I'm hoping to get a lot better at it in the future as I am planning on writing several action/battle sequences.
> 
> Also, any ideas as to what Marinette might have been sketching in her sketchbook? ;)
> 
> See you next chapter!


	3. The Lunch ‘Date’

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Adrien has a free lunch away from his photoshoots and other responsibilities, Nino suggests they invite Alya and Marinette to join them. Adrien becomes overrun with anxiety about having to spend one-on-one time with Marinette and what he would even talk to her about.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi Everyone!  
> I apologise that it's been so long since I've posted a new chapter. I've just been so busy with my studies lately that I haven't really had a lot of time to write much for this fic. So it's been a really slow process, but here we are finally a new chapter!
> 
> Enjoy!

As the bell rang, signaling the end of the fifth period and the beginning of lunch, Ms Bustier reminded the class one last time about their art projects that were due the following day for Gabriel Agreste’s Derby Hat contest. 

Having been at public school for well over a month now, Adrien had since gotten used to this new lifestyle of attending school, whilst also continuing his modeling and engaging in his extracurriculars; such as fencing, playing piano, and his Chinese lessons. But school wasn’t the only new thing within his life that took some getting used to. Managing his new secret life as Chat Noir sometimes did prove to be a bit of a challenge; especially when he would have to sneak off to go and fight Akuma’s every now and again. But that aside, Adrien saw it as an escape from reality, where there weren’t any rules or expectations that he had to meet. He finally got a taste of the freedom that he was always longing for, and he never wanted to let it go. So despite all the extra work, responsibilities and challenges that this new lifestyle of his now has, he could never imagine going back to his old life of isolation and confinement. A busy life was better than no life at all.

Speaking of having a life, after confirming with Nathalie about three times this morning, Adrien finally had a lunchtime today where he didn’t have a photoshoot that he had to run off to or any other extracurriculars that he had to attend; for once he had a free schedule for lunch and he wanted to spend this rare opportunity with his friends. 

Adrien quickly gathered up the rest of this belongings and chased after Nino, who had just walked out of the classroom.

“Hey Nino wait up!”

Nino had stopped just at the top of the staircase and turned around to face the blonde haired boy, who was racing down the hallway towards him.

“What’s up bro! Are you about to head off to another photoshoot or somethin’?”

“Actually not today. I checked, like three times with Nathalie this morning and for the first time ever I’m free for lunch. I even convinced her that it would be easier if I had lunch at school today instead of having to go home and then come back again.” Adrien explained as they walked down the stairs to the courtyard.

Nino’s face lit up in excitement from the sound of this amazing news.

“Wooh Dude, for real! That’s awesome! Let’s totally go somewhere for lunch...” Nino exclaimed.

“I was thinking the same thing,” Adrien felt pleased that he and Nino were on the same wavelength. ‘ _It’s meant to be a good sign that they were becoming good friends, right?’_

“... And let's invite Alya and Marinette too! I’m sure they’d both love to grab a bite with us,” Nino added.

 _‘Wait what?’_ Adrien’s prior thoughts about their growing friendship instantly hit the breaks when he heard Nino’s idea. _‘Lunch. WITH MARINETTE. Errrrr…’_

Obviously Nino could see the sudden alarm in Adrien’s face and tried to reassure him, “come on Dude it’ll be great trust me.” Nino couldn’t help but smile at Adrien’s worried expression, it was as though he found it slightly amusing somehow.

“But what if they’re b-busy? I know Marinette is planning on entering my Father’s Derby Hat contest, which ends tomorrow. She’s probably working on that right now.” Adrien was praying that Nino would buy into his lousy excuse and leave the idea alone so that then just the two of them could go get lunch. With just Nino, Adrien felt relaxed and he could talk to Nino about anything, like video games or music. But if Marinette was there too, Adrien would have completely no idea what to even say to her. _‘Did she even like playing video games?’_ Adrien wondered. _‘Wait of course she does,’_ Adrien remembered, he sometimes sees her playing video games with Max in the library. _‘She’s probably amazing at them! Hmm… I wonder if she plays Ultimate Mecha Strike III like I do? Or would she think that version is lame?’_ Either way, Adrien knew if Marinette was there he would just turn into a stuttering mess and probably make himself look like a fool. Sometimes he still couldn’t even believe it. That Adrien Agreste, son of the world-renowned fashion designer Gabriel Agreste, the most successful and well-known model in all of Europe for his age, loses all knowledge of speech and coordination within his body by just the mere presence of a certain cute girl with pigtails. And whats more, Adrien had a growing suspicion that Nino and Alya were being to notice his odd behaviour for whenever Marinette was around. He could only hope that neither of them would hint to Marinette about his crush on her. 

Adrien was pulled out of his thoughts by a hand that was being waved in front of his face.

“Hello, anyone in there?” Nino said, trying to get Adrien’s attention.

“Oh. Sorry Nino, I just got lost in thought. What did you say?” Adrien shook his head slightly in attempts to pull himself back into reality.

Nino smirked, “hmph you must have been having some interesting thoughts to completely zone out like that man.”

“No it’s nothing like that,” Adrien began rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. _‘Maybe Nino knew more about the situation than I realised’_.

“Hey don’t worry about it Dude, I’m just messin’ with you. It’s all cool. Anyways, I said why don’t we just ask Alya and Marinette if they want to join us? They’re just sitting right over there.”

Adrien’s eyes followed the direction in which Nino was pointing in, and sure enough, sitting on a bench near the entranceway of the courtyard was Marinette and Alya. They both seemed to be looking at something once again in Marinette’s sketchbook. _‘What so interesting in that sketchbook for them to always be hunched over it?’_

“Come on Dude, it’ll be a great opportunity to get to know the girls better. You said so yourself the other week, that one of the reasons you’re even at public school is to make more friends right?” Damn Nino and using Adrien’s own reasonings against him. 

But Adrien’s own feelings aside, he also knew that Nino was just itching for an excuse himself to spend some more time with Alya. For the entire time that Adrien had been at school, he had been noticing the flirtatious yet slightly shy behaviour between Nino and Alya. They both seem to really like each other, but at the same time it seems as though neither of them know how to make the first move to admit their feelings to each other. Either way, at least they aren’t scared to talk to one another and they actually have the courage to spend time together; unlike Adrien’s current predicament.

So how could Adrien say no to Nino, when this idea to have a group lunch with the girls is just another reason for him to spend more time with Alya?

Reluctantly, Adrien let out a small sign of defeat and that’s all Nino needed. Before Adrien knew what was happening, Nino had grabbed him by the arm and was now dragging Adrien over to where the girls were sitting.

“Yo Alya, Marinette! How's it going?” Nino called out as they approached them.

Alya and Marinette both looked up from Marinette’s sketchbook at the sound of Nino’s greeting.

“Hey Nino. Hey Adrien. What's going on?” Alya waved at the boys as they arrived at their bench.

“Adrien here finally has a free lunch break without his old man sending him off left, right and centre to attend boring photoshoots. So we’re gonna go somewhere to celebrate this rare occasion and we were hoping that maybe you ladies would like to join us?” As Nino explained the situation to the girls, Adrien just stood next to him and stared down at his feet. He could bring himself to look up and face the girls; to face Marinette.

“That sounds amazing! Marinette and I were just about to head out for some lunch ourselves,” Alya said as she began picking up her bag. “So we'd totally love to join you. Right, Marinette?”

“Yeah definitely. We haven't had a chance to go out together as a whole group since Adrien started here,” Marinette added as she stood up with her bag and sketchbook in hand.

Adrien looked up at Marinette and found her smiling across at him. He could already feel his face taking on a light shade of red, and he hadn't even spoken two words to her yet.

“Great! Well come on let’s get going otherwise the lunch break will be over be we get anywhere.” Nino led the group out the entrance of the school with Alya by his side, which left Adrien to follow behind along with Marinette. 

* * *

After a bit of an argument about where to go to eat, which mostly occurred between Alya and Nino as Adrien and Marinette were too intimidated to get involved within their debate about which street cafés had the best food, the group finally agreed one of the small cafés a few streets down from the school; which also didn’t seem too busy at the time. As they approached one of the empty tables, Alya and Nino instantly sat down next to each other on one side; forcing Adrien and Marinette to be seated together on the other side of the table. 

After one of the waitresses came and took their orders, Alya and Nino began talking amongst themselves about a new mixtape that Nino’s been working on, which left Adrien and Marinette to sit in awkward silence.

Clearly, this was some kind of plan by Alya and Nino to give Adrien and Marinette some one-on-one time together, but it wasn’t a very good plan if Adrien couldn’t even speak to the beautiful girl who was sitting right next to him. 

Marinette had turned her head to face the front counter of the café and was watching the workers hurrying about to prepare our orders. All Adrien could think to do was simply stare down at his folded hands upon his lap. The longer they sat here in this awkward silence, the longer Adrien felt pressured to say something. Yet no matter how hard he tried to think of something to say, his mind remained blank.

Suddenly, he felt something kick his shin under the table and when he looked up from his folded hands he found Nino glaring at him with a stern look upon his face. With wide eyes, he subtly nodded his head to the side in Marinette’s direction. Obviously Nino was even feeling the awkwardness within the air between them, and he was now trying to push Adrien to start talking with her so they wouldn't spend the rest of their lunchtime in silence.

Inhaling a deep breath, Adrien tried his best to push aside his anxiety and turned to Marinette. “Um…. So Marinette how design the contest hat goes? I mean, Marinette how goes your design for the hat contest?”

Marinette turned around to face him with a warm gentle smile. If she found him stuttering amusing, she didn't make a show of it; typical Marinette always so kind and understanding.

“It's going well thank you. I'm actually almost finished. I have the whole hat itself completed but I just feel like it's missing one last touch before it's perfect but I just can't figure out what. But honestly, I’m just so excited about this whole thing. It’s such a great opportunity and it would be a dream come true if I got the chance to intern at a world-renowned fashion house.”

“I'm sure um… you'll figure out the final piece to it.”

Adrien couldn’t help but smile at Marinette’s enthusiasm, there was just something so adorable about it.

“Thanks Adrien and I hope so, the contest is due tomorrow. Wait am I even allowed to be talking to you about this, you know it is your dad’s contest after all and you will be modeling the winning derby hat?” 

Adrien chuckled softly, it was cute how she showed concern for even the simplest matters. “Don't worry, it’s alright. It’s not like I’m giving pointers on your design or anything.”

“Okay then, if you say so,'' Marinette giggled along with him. 

_‘Wow I actually spoke a proper sentence to her without stuttering’_ Adrien didn't want this to be the end of their conversation and he was racking his once empty brain for something else to say to her; anything else. 

“So um… what else have you been up to lately? Have you played any new... er… video games?”

“Gosh, I wish. Honestly, I haven’t really had much time to do anything else. I’ve been so busy with the contest, school, and… um… helping my parents at the bakery, that I haven’t been able to play any video games. Truth be told, I really miss playing Ultimate Mecha Strike III. It’s been weeks since I last played and I think my dad has secretly been practicing on his own for when we versus each other next.”

“You like Ultimate Mecha Strike III?”

Marinette’s face lit up in excitement, “Yeah, of course, I mean who doesn’t? And not to brag or anything, but I’m kind of like a pro.”

Adrien saw this as his chance, a window opening of some common ground between them, “Well then maybe… I dunno… we could verse each other some time?”

Marinette was silent for a moment as she stared at Adrien as if contemplating his suggestion. Her blank expression then changed into joy as a warm smile filled her face.

Marinette leaned slightly closer to Adrien and placed her hand upon his upper arm, “I would like that very much Adrien. Once the contest is over and whenever you're free again from your photoshoots, we should definitely play a match together.”

At the sound of footsteps approaching, Marinette removed her hand from Adrien’s arm and turned around to face the returning waitress with their lunch orders. Adrien instantly missed that brief contact between them and he secretly wished that Marinette would have left her hand upon his arm, but then again that would have seemed a bit too weird. But he still couldn’t help but miss her touch.

“Here you go kids, bon appétit!” The waitress exclaimed as she placed down each of their orders in front of them.

With that, the four teenagers dug into their meals and enjoyed each other’s company for the remaining time they had left for their lunch break.

As Alya, Nino and Marinette began talking lively about the new Jagged Stone album, Adrien couldn’t help but think to himself about the conversation he and Marinette had together and he felt a sense of pride that he was able to hold a normal conversation with her and he didn’t stutter. Maybe Nino was right, the more got himself to talk with Marinette, the more he could build up his confidence around her. And then maybe, just maybe, Adrien could get her to see a different side of him, a side that showed her that he wanted to be more than just a friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will be about the events of the Derby Hat Contest, post battle with Mr. Pigeon and more about the Gabriel internship.
> 
> Leave any thoughts in the comments below, I love reading all your amazing feedback. Your comments honestly motivate me to keep writing! 
> 
> See you all next chapter! (which hopefully won't be as long of a wait as this chapter was.)


	4. The Contest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After the battle with Mr. Pigeon, Adrien rushes back to school to meet his father and Nathalie for the Derby Hat contest; with hopes of catching Marinette before the contest begins.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Everyone!  
> Long time no read, hope you enjoy this new chapter of Two Hearts Made For One. Sorry it took so long.<3

“Miraculous Ladybug!” As Ladybug threw her Lucky Charm into the air, millions of little Ladybugs swarmed around the city reversing all the damage that was caused during that latest akuma attack by Mr. Pigeon.

_‘Wow that never gets old,’_ Chat Noir thought to himself as he watched the incredible little creatures do their job.

“Great job kitty,” Ladybug praised as she turned to face her partner.

“Likewise LB,” Chat Noir replied.

“Pound it!” They both then exclaimed in unison. Fist bumping each other in congratulations after each akuma battle had now become a little ritual of theirs.

After helping Mr. Ramier recover from his akuma possession, and Chat Noir finally stopped sneezing, Ladybug turned to him and said, "So kitty cat, you up for a little late night patrol tonight?" 

Even though the sneezing had stopped, Chat was still dealing with some last remaining sniffles. "Yeah sure LB I'm down for a patrol tonight. I've just got a few things to take care of beforehand but I'll be there." Chat said as he rubbed his nose one last time in attempts to shake away the remainder of his sniffles.

Ladybug's smile widened at Chat response, just as her earrings sounded with the last warning that she was down to her final minute. "Great! Same place, same time as always?"

"You got it LB," Chat replied just as his ring gave off the same warning. "See you then!" With that Chat Noir sprinted off in the opposite direction of Ladybug as she turned to make her own quick getaway. Jumping across the rooftops of Paris had become much easier over time, and now Chat was able to get from one location to another in mere seconds. 

Dropping down into an alleyway close to the school, and doing a quick check that the coast was clear, Chat Noir released his transformation with three seconds to spare. Plagg landed in the palm of Adrien's waiting hand, whilst his other hand reached into his pocket to retrieve a piece of Camembert.

"My gooeyness!" Plagg exclaimed before chowing down the gross smelling cheese.

Adrien chuckled at Plagg's absurd obsession with Camembert. "Finish up Plagg, we've got to get back to the school. My father and Nathalie will be here soon to judge the Derby hat contest."

"And you're hoping to see your girlfriend with the pigtails before it starts," Plagg added between chews on the last bit of Camembert that he had stuffed into his mouth.

Adrien could feel the heat rising in his cheeks at Plagg's comment. "She's not my girlfriend Plagg, and I just want to wish her luck before the judging begins."

"Sure thing lover boy," Plagg said before zipping back into Adrien's overshirt.

Rushing back over to the school, Adrien took the front steps two at a time as he made his way into the courtyard. He looked around in hopes of spotting Marinette, but all he found was disappointment. Most of the students had begun to file in and were taking their places to present their Derby Hat creations to Adrien’s father, but Marinette had yet to arrive. Adrien did find Alya standing amongst the group of students who were making final adjustments to their designs and talking eagerly to one another about having the privilege to meet The Gabriel Agreste and how amazing the _Gabriel_ internship would be. She also seemed to be anxiously looking around for Marinette whilst also looking down and checking her phone every two seconds. 

_‘Where was Marinette? Why wasn't she here yet?’_ A ball of anxiety began to grow within the pit of Adrien’s stomach, _‘Marinette had been so excited about this contest, she wouldn’t miss it.’_ As Adrien’s concern rose, more dreadfully thoughts began formulating in his mind as to why Marinette wasn’t present. _‘Maybe something happened at the Bakery? What if she was in trouble? What if something happened to her on her way to or from school that day as the Akuma attack had happened? WHAT IF MARINETTE HAD GOTTEN HURT DURING THE AKUMA ATTACK!? And now she was injured somewhere, all on her own?’_ Adrien had to shake those last few thoughts from his mind, Ladybug’s Miraculous heal always fixes everything that is caused during an akuma attack, so Marinette would be fine.

As Adrien began approaching Alya to ask her where Marinette was, something grabbed onto Adrien's arm and pulled him off his path. Before he could turn to see what it was that had stopped him, the voice that called out to him told Adrien all he needed to know.

"Adrikins!"

Sighing, Adrien turned to face Chloe with a plastered 'model smile', his chat with Alya would just have to wait for now. "Hi Chloe".

"Oh Adrikins just wait til you see the amazing Derby Hat that I created! It is simply one of the best Derby Hats ever created and it’s going to blow your father away with how incredible it is.”

“Wow Chloe I’m impressed and proud of you for creating something all on your own!”

“Why Adrichu was there ever any doubt that I couldn’t create something fabulous all on my own? I am simply incredible you know, and so is everything that I do,” Chloe exclaimed as she hugged Adrien’s arm tighter.

Adrien truly loved his dear childhood friend, but honestly the names that Chloe often came out with made him internally cringe. Suddenly Adrien’s phone started vibrating within his pocket, without even having to look at it Adrien instantly knew that it was Natalie calling to inform him that she was arriving at the school with his father.

Carefully pulling Chloe's clutched arm off of his own, Adrien stepped away from her and said, "sorry Chloe Natalie is calling to let me know that she and my father are almost here, and I need to go and meet them."

"Of course Adrikins! Go meet your father, and let's get this competition that I'll doubtedly win underway." To this remark, Chloe giggled to herself as Adrien made his way over to the entrance of the school. 

Just as he walked through the school's entranceway Adrien took another quick look to where Marinette’s spot was reserved. Alya had started frantically pacing back and forth as there was still no sign of Marinette.

Pausing one last time, Adrien felt conflicted, he wanted to go over to Alya and see if he could help look for Marinette but his father would be arriving at any minute. Taking a deep breath Adrien continued making his way through the entrance doors of the school and down the stairs to the street. He had faith that Marinette would get here, she was so excited about this whole competition, it wouldn’t be like her to pass up an opportunity like this so easily. She will get here. 

As Adrien eased his thoughts about Marinette, a black car pulled up right in front of the school, his father's car. Adrien took a few more steps closer to the car and waited for its occupants to exit the vehicle. First the Gorilla stepped out and walked around to the other side where Adrien was waiting to open the passenger door. Adrien couldn’t help but feel a slight touch of excitement swell up inside him. This would be the first time his father was coming to his school, his father was finally going to see firsthand how much Adrien loved his school and friends that were here; even if it was for a business affair. But still once seeing a bit of Adrien’s school life maybe, just maybe, his father would relax a bit more on Adrien’s scheduling and allow him to have some more free time for school activities (and his friends too).

As the Gorilla opened the door it wasn’t Adrien’s father who stepped out of the car, it was Nathalie and she was on her own.

“Nathalie, where’s father?” Adrien asked timidly.

“I’m sorry Adrien, your father is very busy at the moment and is unable to attend in person. So instead he will be judging this competition through a video conference.” At this explanation, Nathalie held up the tablet that she had been holding and pressed the screen to power it on; which caused Gabriel Agreste to appear on the screen. 

“Hello Adrien,” Gabriel said.

“Father.” Adrien simply replied. He didn’t know what else to say to his father, he felt disappointed that his father hadn’t shown up in person, but then again a part of him wasn’t surprised; in all honestly he should have expected this.

“Adrien please escort Nathalie into the school, we best get this competition over with already,” Gabriel exclaimed dully.

“Of course Father.” Adrien led Nathalie up the steps and through the front entrance of the school to where Mr. Damocles was waiting for them.

“Hello Mr. Damocles, I am Mr. Agreste’s personal assistant,” Nathalie greeted in her monotone voice that she normally utilises when professionally dealing with business clients. 

“Hello Miss. Pardon me, but where is Mr. Agreste?” Mr. Damocles questioned, appearing to also be slightly disappointed at the lack of Mr. Agreste’s presence.

_‘Yeah, join the club Sir.’_ Adrien thought to himself. 

At his comment, Nathalie held up her tablet once more to show Adrien’s father. “I’m here,” Gabriel exclaimed.

“Ah hello Mr. Agreste, welcome to our school.” Mr. Damocles seemed somewhat relieved to see that Mr. Agreste was still going to be present within the judging of this competition. 

“Adrien, take Nathalie around,” Gabriel said, ignoring Mr. Damocles’ welcome.

Sighing, Adrien led the way towards the first group which was Rose and Juleka. 

“As you can see Mr. Agreste, our students have poured their hearts and souls into their projects,” Mr. Damocles commented as Gabriel observed the first creation.

Adrien was trying his best to pay attention as Rose and Juleka explained their design, but his eyes couldn’t help but follow as Marinette ran past them to where Alya was waiting with her hatbox in hand. He was so relieved to see her, she made it just in time and he couldn’t wait to see her creation. 

Adrien was caught up in watching Marinette as she quietly spoke with Alya that he almost didn’t notice as Nathalie, his father, and Mr. Damocles moved onto the next participant’s; which was Chloe.

Chloe bowed to Gabriel as she introduced herself,“hi Mr. Agreste, I’m Chloe Bourgeois. You know my father André Bourgeois, the Mayor.” 

“Yes, hello Miss Bourgeois.” Gabriel replied yet by his tone Adrien could tell his father was already growing bored of this competition; even though it was his own idea and to benefit his own company.

Gabriel didn’t give Chloe much time presenting her design before moving onto the next one, and to Adrien it seemed that even though Chloe initially spoke to him proudly about her creation, now she didn’t seem to give great detail about the inspiration for her hat or choice behind the use of feathers.

As the group turned to approach Marinette and her Derby hat, Adrien stopped dead in his tracks. ‘ _Way did Marinette’s hat look exactly like Chloe’s? It was impossible to have two pieces exactly the same, unless…’_

Gabriel had also realised this peculiarity upon instantly inspecting Marinette’s hat too, yet Marinette seemed perfectly calm about it; as if there wasn’t anything wrong between her hat and the previous one. 

“Nathalie, turn the tablet back to Miss Bourgeois’s hat,” Gabriel said. After inspecting Chloe’s hat once more, Gabriel exclaiming, “is this a joke?”

“No fair! Marinette copied my design. It’s scandalous! How could you do that?” Chloe sobbed.

“I apologise for the situation Mr. Agreste,” Marinette retorted. “But I can prove this Derby hat is my original design.” 

Nathalie turned the tablet back to Marinette so Gabriel could see Marinette and her Derby hat once more, “go ahead.”

“Everything on my derby hat is handmade, from the embroidery to the weaving of the band and to the stitching of the brim,” Marinette explained without hesitation. “All done by myself of course,” she added confidently.

“And last, there’s an element that only the true designer knows about,” Marinette turned her derby hat upside down and pointed to the gold embroidery on the band. “I signed mine.” At first glance, the gold embroidery simply looked like an intricate pattern, but upon closer inspection, it was clear that Marinette’s name was carefully woven into the pattern.

Adrien had to say he was beyond impressed, Marinette has done an amazing job, she was a true fashion designer to incorporate such a special touch to her creation.

Evidently it seemed like everyone else was just as impressed by Marinette’s design too, especially Chloe who had suddenly gasped once Marinette revealed her name upon the hat. In doing so, Chloe accidentally knocked her own Derby hat off its pedestal and onto the ground. As Mr. Damocles picked up Chloe’s hat he, like Marinette demonstrated, turned the duplicate upside down and examined the gold embroidery on the band and sure enough there was Marinette’s name within the stitching. 

In utter humiliation, Chloe fled the school’s courtyard in tears with Sabrina chasing off behind her.

“A very exquisite creation,” Gabriel commented. “You have the labouring hands of a hat maker, Miss…”

“Marinette.” Adrien said before Marinette had a chance to respond herself.

“Congratulations on your demonstration Miss Marinette. You’re the winner.” Gabriel declared, without bothering to even look at the remaining hat designs. 

Marinette gave a small shriek with glee. “Thank you, thank you, thank you,” she said and bowed to Gabriel with each thank you she gave.

“Adrien will wear your Derby on our next advertising campaign, and as of next Saturday we would like you to be a part of our new weekend internship program that we're running at the _Gabriel_ head office.”

Adrien reached out and placed his hand on top of Marinette’s, he couldn’t find the words to tell Marinette how proud and excited he was for her especially with all the eyes that were currently watching them. So he settled for simply saying, “awesome job Marinette.”

Adrien noticed a slight hint of pink flush onto Marinette’s cheeks, but that could have just been from her excitement. 

“Thank you Adrien,” she replied with a shy smile. Now Adrien could feel the redness growing upon his own cheeks. As he stepped back to stand once more next to Nathalie, Adrien looked down at his feet and rubbed the back of his neck in attempts to hide his flushed cheeks from Marinette and other witnesses.

After Gabriel informed Marinette that Nathalie would be in contact with her soon with further details about the internship, they turned around and made their leave. Mr. Damocles thanked Nathalie and Gabriel once again for holding this competition and taking the time to come to the school. 

As Adrien followed Nathalie out the front entrance of the school, he turned around briefly one last time to where Marinette and Alya were still jumping up and down in excitement. Adrien felt a pang of longing fill his chest to be over there with them, to be with Marinette as she celebrated this amazing news. He wanted nothing more than to run back over there to them and spin Marinette around within an enormous hug and never let go. But alas, things between him and Marinette weren’t the way he wished them to be, they were only friends, so for now all Adrien could do was watch from a distance and wait for the moment when he could finally be something more than a friend for Marinette to come.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... I'm not going to make any promises as to when the next chapter will be out. Sorry.
> 
> But I can tell you that the next chapter will be Chat and Ladybug out on their Patrol and Adrien dealing with post-emotions of Marinette winning the contest and some teasing from Plagg. ;)
> 
> See you in the next chapter. <3


End file.
